title: Microdosimetric measurements of radiation quality variations in homogeneous phantoms irradiated by fast neutron beams.
abstract: The Dual Radiation Action Theory of Kellerer and Rossi (DRA), along with presently available microdosimetric techniques, is applied to the determination of radiation quality variation within tissue equivalent phantoms irradiated by collimated fast neutron beams. The neutron beams investigated were produced by the bombardment of 22.5 and 16 MeV d + on beryllium and by the T(d,n)4He reaction (15-MeV neutrons). Microdosimetric spectra were obtained at points of varying depth and lateral distance from the central axis within a tissue equivalent phantom, including points within the penumbra. From the microdosimetric spectra the parameter RQ, a first approximation to RBE derived from DRA theory, is calculated for each point. All RQ values are calculated for the same level of effect. For these three different beams the results show that the RQ values for the total radiation spectrum of neutron and gamma radiation remain fairly constant with depth and with lateral distance from the beam axis at 2 and 10 cm depths. The largest central axis variation in RQ is 8% for the d(16) + Be beam. The largest variation between a penumbra and an on-axis RQ value is 4% at 2 cm depth in the d(22.5) + Be beam. The results for the d (22.5) + Be beam disagree with previously reported radiological results while the 15 McV beam results are in good agreement.
mesh_terms: D005214:Fast Neutrons; D008961:Models, Structural; D009502:Neutrons; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D011882:Radiotherapy, High-Energy